Tubing slide clamp for infusion pumps with dual tubing apertures and ergonomic handle

ABSTRACT

A slide clamp for use with an infusion pump and infusion set provides finger grips and support members for supporting the infusion tubing. The finger grips make the slide clamp easier to use while reducing the risk of error. The tubing support members reduce the likelihood of improperly loading the tubing and reduce the risk of kinking the tubing during use. An infusion set is provided wherein the slide clamp may be coded through the use of colors, holes, or the like so as to identify the type of infusion tubing used therewith. The infusion pump can identify the code on the slide clamp and thereby determine the type of infusion tubing, and thereby allow access only to infusion programs for drugs or infusion solutions which are compatible with the particular type of infusion tubing.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 60/936,351, filed Jun. 21, 2007, which is expresslyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. The Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a slide clamp used in conjunction withinfusion sets for IV infusion pumps. More specifically, the presentinvention relates to an improved slide clamp which reduces thepossibility of improperly mounting the infusion tubing in the pump andwhich reduces the possibility of free flow or improper operation of theinfusion pump and which is easier to use than available slide clamps.

2. State of the Art

IV infusion pumps are commonly used in treating patients. Infusion pumpsdeliver a controlled amount of solution such as saline solution and maybe used to deliver medication or the like to a patient. An exemplarytype of IV infusion pump is the SPECTRUM pump made by SIGMAINTERNATIONAL. Such a linear peristaltic infusion pump will be discussedherein as exemplary of the present invention, as the principles andstructures of the present invention will similarly apply to othersimilar infusion pumps.

IV infusion pumps and infusion sets often include a slide clamp. Theslide clamp is part of the infusion set, and interacts with the tubingof the infusion set to selectively prevent free flow through theinfusion tubing. The slide clamp typically has a tapered, elongate holethrough which the tubing passes. The tubing is not occluded at one endof the hole, and is pinched closed if slid to the other end of the hole.In some cases the slide clamp serves as a key to turn the infusion pumpon and off, and may aid in securing the tubing of the infusion setwithin the pump channel. On some pumps, the slide clamp also serves as akey to open the door of the pump in order to load or unload the infusiontubing. The pump door is unlocked by pressing a portion of the slideclamp into a slot in the body of the pump. Pressing the slide clamp intothe slot forces the tubing to the narrow end of the tapered hole,pinching the tubing closed. Thus, the slide clamp provides a measure ofsafety in preventing free flow as it pinches the tubing closed when thepump door is opened. Slide clamps are often keyed to fit a particularpump, and thus ensure that only compatible infusion sets are used withthat pump.

The available slide clamps, however, suffer from several drawbacks.Primarily, the slide clamps do not fix the position of the infusion tuberelative to the pump. This leads to potential errors in loading thepump, as the technician loading the pump may place the tubing throughthe pump in the wrong direction. If the tubing is loaded in the wrongdirection, the pump will draw blood from the patient rather thaninfusing medicament solutions into the patient. It becomes more likelythat the infusion tube is improperly loaded in the pump during emergencysituations as the medical personnel are in a hurry and are may not be ascareful. There are several recorded instances where this type of IVinfusion tubing was loaded improperly in the pump and blood was drawnout of the patient.

Additionally, available slide clamps can be difficult to use. The slideclamps are relatively small, and can be difficult for a technician toproperly insert and remove from the IV pump. When used as a key foractuating an infusion pump as discussed, the slide clamp may bedifficult to remove from the pump as the majority of the slide clamp isencased within the pump. There is thus a need for an improved slideclamp.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved slideclamp for IV infusion pumps.

According to one aspect of the invention, a slide clamp is providedwhich, when inserted into the pump to open the pump door, holds thetubing in a fixed orientation relative to the pump, orienting theupstream portion of the tubing away from the pump and orienting thedownstream portion of the pump across the face of the pump. This placesthe downstream portion of the tubing in position to be loaded in thepump and significantly reduces the likelihood that the tubing isimproperly loaded in the pump.

According to another aspect of the invention, the slide clamp providesintegrated handles which are used to more easily insert or remove theslide clamp from the pump body. The handles make it easier to use theslide clamp and reduce the likelihood that the slide clamp is not fullyengaged or disengaged during use.

According to another aspect of the invention, the slide clamp provides atubing support for the tubing which is upstream from the pump. Thesupport helps to prevent kinking of the tubing upstream from the pumpwhile the pump is in use. This, in turn, reduces interruptions intherapy resulting from kinked tubing.

According to another aspect of the invention, a slide clamp is providedwhich is coded such that the pump is able to identify the type ofinfusion tubing loaded into the pump by detecting the coding of theslide clamp. The infusion pump may then, based on the type of infusiontubing used, only allow modes of operation which are compatible with theparticular type of infusion tube and the drugs or solutions which arecompatible with that type of tubing.

These and other aspects of the present invention are realized in a slideclamp as shown and described in the following figures and relateddescription.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various embodiments of the present invention are shown and described inreference to the numbered drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a prior art IV infusion pump;

FIG. 2 shows another perspective view of the pump of FIG. 1, the pumpdoor being open;

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of a prior art slide clamp;

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the prior art pump and slide clamp ascommonly used together;

FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of a slide clamp according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 6 shows a side view of the slide clamp of FIG. 5 with an infusiontubing;

FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of the slide clamp of FIG. 5 in use;

FIG. 8 shows another perspective view of the slide clamp of FIG. 5 inuse; and

FIG. 9 shows another perspective view of the slide clamp of FIG. 5.

It will be appreciated that the drawings are illustrative and notlimiting of the scope of the invention which is defined by the appendedclaims. The embodiments shown accomplish various aspects and objects ofthe invention. It is appreciated that it is not possible to clearly showeach element and aspect of the invention in a single figure, and assuch, multiple figures are presented to separately illustrate thevarious details of the invention in greater clarity. Similarly, notevery embodiment need accomplish all advantages of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention and accompanying drawings will now be discussed inreference to the numerals provided therein so as to enable one skilledin the art to practice the present invention. The drawings anddescriptions are exemplary of various aspects of the invention and arenot intended to narrow the scope of the appended claims.

Turning now to FIG. 1, a perspective view of a linear peristaltic IVpump as is known in the prior art is shown. The pump 10 includes a pumpdoor 14 which holds the infusion tubing into the pump and which holdsthe tubing against the pumping mechanism. FIG. 2 shows a perspectiveview of the pump 10, showing the door 14 in an open position. In use, aninfusion tubing is loaded into a channel 18 in the pump 10. The channel18 includes the various sensors or tubing engagement members 22 as wellas the pumping members 26 which compress the tubing to force solutiontherethrough at a controlled rate.

The tubing is loaded into the channel 18 and the pump door 14 is thenclosed, holding the tubing in the proper location in the pump. The pump10 has a keyhole slot 30 disposed in the top of the pump. The keyhole 30receives the slide clamp 34 (FIG. 3), and the slide clamp is insertedfully into the keyhole 30 to open the pump door 14. This prevents thedoor 14 from being inadvertently opened which in turn releases thetubing from the control of the pumping members. As will be explained inadditional detail below, using the slide clamp as a key to open the door14 causes the slide clamp to occlude flow through the tubing.

FIG. 3 shows the prior art slide clamp 34. The slide clamp 34 includes aslot 38 through which the infusion tubing passes. The slot 38 includesan open lower portion 42 in which the tubing can be initially disposed.The lower portion 42 does not close the tubing. The slot 38 alsoincludes an open middle portion 46 which transitions into a narrow slit50. The infusion tubing passes transversely through the slot 38. Theslide clamp 34 has a raised tab 54 (or alternatively a slot) whichallows the slide clamp 34 to only be inserted into the pump 10 in asingle orientation. The slide clamp 34 has a small flat head 58(approximately 0.5 inch wide by 0.2 inch in size) which is used toinsert and remove the slide clamp 34 from the pump 10.

When an infusion set is to be used, the slide clamp is typicallypositioned so the tubing is in the narrow slit 50, thereby occludingflow through the tubing. This prevents a free-flow condition wherein thesolution in the infusion set is controlled only by gravity. When theslide clamp 34 is pressed into the keyhole 30 in the pump 10, the tubingis maintained in the narrow slit 50 (or forced into the narrow slit ifnot yet in this position), pinching the tubing closed. The tubing ispulled back into one of the open portions 42, 46 when the slide clamp 34is removed from the pump 10. If the pump door is to be opened, the slideclamp 34 must be reinserted into the keyhole 30. This forces the tubingback into the narrow slit 50, thereby occluding the tubing and stoppingflow through the tubing and preventing free flow.

Turning now to FIG. 4, a perspective view of the pump 10 and prior artslide clamp 34 with tubing 62 is shown. The slide clamp 34 has beeninserted into the keyhole 30 sufficiently far to open the pump door 14.It can be seen how the upper surface of the pump 10 ensures the tubing62 is in the narrow slit 50, pinching the tubing closed and preventingflow through the tubing while loading the pump. The tubing 62 is thenloaded into the pump 10 by pressing the downstream portion 62b of thetubing into the channel 18 and closing the door 14. The tubing 62 isremoved from the pump 10 by pressing the slide clamp 34 into the keyhole30 to again open the door 14, occluding flow through the tubing 62 atthe same time by forcing the tubing into the narrow slit 50.

Problems have occurred while loading the tubing 62 into the pump 10.When the tubing 62 is pinched closed by the slide clamp 34, the tubingis easily bent and not held in any repeatable position relative to thepump 10. As a result, the tubing has been improperly loaded into thepump in several instances. In some cases, the upstream portion 62 a ofthe tubing 62 is pulled across the front of the pump 10 or wrappedaround the back of the pump and loaded into the channel. Improperloading of the tubing 62 into the pump 10 typically results in improperoperation of the pump. In several cases, the tubing 62 was improperlyloaded into the pump 10 and the pump then drew blood from the patientand pumped the blood toward the IV bag. This results in both a loss ofblood from the patient (potentially serious where a person may havealready lost blood in an injury) and in the patient not receiving thefluids or medication which were intended for delivery from the IV bag.

Another limitation of the present pump 10 and infusion tubing 62 andslide clamp 34 is that the tubing may become kinked during operation.The slide clamp 34, by pinching the tubing 62 closed, creates a weakpoint in the tubing. This weak point or other locations along the tubing62 may be come kinked or bent closed while the pump is in use. Theupstream portion 62 a of the tubing 62 is typically long enough to droopbelow the top of the pump 10 and then extend upwardly to the IV bag,which may result in the tubing 62 bending at the slide clamp 34,pinching the tubing closed at the bend. If the tubing 62 is pinchedclosed or otherwise bent or kinked, flow of the IV solution to thepatient may be compromised.

Turning now to FIG. 5, a perspective view of a slide clamp 66 accordingto the present invention is shown. The slide clamp 66 includes a body 68with a first opening or clamping slot 70 through which the infusiontubing passes. The slot 70 includes an open lower portion 74 in whichthe tubing is initially disposed. The lower portion 74 does not closethe tubing. The slot 70 also includes an open middle portion 78 whichtransitions into a narrow slit 82. The infusion tubing passestransversely through the slot 70. The slide clamp 66 may include araised tab 86 (or alternatively a slot or other registration means)which allows the slide clamp 66 to only be inserted into the pump 10 ina single orientation. The lower portion of the slide clamp 66 which isinserted into the pump 10 is configured substantially the same as theprior art slide clamp 34 so that the improved slide clamp 66 willfunction with the pump in the same manner. Thus, when the slide clamp 66is pressed into the keyhole 30 in the pump 10, the tubing is forced intothe narrow slit 82, pinching the tubing closed. The tubing is pulledback into one of the open portions 74, 78 when the slide clamp 66 ispulled upwardly or removed from the pump 10.

The slide clamp 66 includes two laterally extending finger grips 90 anda rearwardly extending support arm 94. The finger grips 90 provide aplace where a user may securely grip the slide clamp 66, making iteasier for the user to insert the slide clamp into the keyhole 30 or toremove the slide clamp from the keyhole. The slide clamp 66 may alsoinclude a central depression 92 on which a user's thumb would rest.Thus, the top of the slide clamp 66 relative to the body 68 can easilybe gripped by the thumb and two fingers for insertion or removal of theslide clamp from the pump 10. The user has greater control over theslide clamp 66 because there is a larger area to grip.

The support arm 94 includes a second opening or support hole 98 throughwhich the infusion tubing passes and a downwardly curving supportsurface 102 which supports the upstream portion of the tubing during useto prevent kinking of the tubing. Thus, the slide clamp 66 is easier touse and better supports the tubing.

Turning now to FIG. 6, a partial side view of an infusion set having theslide clamp 66 is shown. It will be appreciated that the infusion setwill comprise additional structures such as syringe ports, IV bagspikes, or luer fittings. These additional structures are not discussedherein. It can be seen how the tubing 62 passes through both theclamping slot 70 and the support hole 98. In use, the upstream portion62 a of the tubing 62 can rest on the support surface 102 to prevent thetubing from bending tightly or kinking. Because the tubing passesthrough the support hole 98, the tubing does not bend adjacent theclamping slot 70. The combination of the clamping slot 70 and thesupport hole 98 position the tubing so as to make it easier to load thetubing 62 into the pump 10 and to reduce the likelihood of error whileloading the tubing.

Turning now to FIG. 7, a perspective view of the slide clamp 66 insertedinto the pump 10 is shown. The slide clamp 66 is fully inserted into thekeyhole 30 to open the pump door, simultaneously ensuring the tubing 62is pressed into the narrow slit 82 and pinching the tubing closed toprevent flow. As is seen, the upstream portion 62 a of the tubing 62passes through the support hole 98 and is held by the support arm 94 sothat the upstream portion of the tubing extends upwardly and away fromthe pump 10. It will be appreciated that, even if the slide clamp doesnot include a registration means 86, the risk of misleading the tubingis reduced since the upstream portion 62 a of the tubing 62 is held sothat it extends upwardly and away from the pump channel 18. By holdingthe upstream portion 62 a of the tubing 62 upwardly and away from thepump 10 and holding the upstream portion of the tubing away from thechannel 18, a user is much less likely to improperly load the tubinginto the pump.

The finger grips 90 and depression 92 for the thumb make itsignificantly easier to use the slide clamp 66. It will be appreciatedthat the tubing 62 fits tightly into the narrow slit 82 in order tosecurely pinch the tubing closed. As such, a fair amount of force isrequired when inserting the slide clamp 66 into the keyhole 30.Additionally, when removing the slide clamp 66 from the keyhole 30, theuser often desires to hold the tubing 62 against the pump 10 whilepulling the slide clamp from the keyhole 30 to ensure that the tubingadjacent the pumping members is not unduly stretched or displaced.Again, a fair amount of force is required in addition to the fact thatthe user may desire to use both hands in removing a slide clamp. It canthus be understood how the finger grips 90 make it significantly easierfor a person to insert and remove the slide clamp 66.

The slide clamp 66 also reduces the risk that the tubing 62 is kinkedwhile in use. Medical personnel may be instructed to leave the slideclamp 66 partially inserted (about 0.25 inch or less) into the keyhole30 so that the slide clamp 66 will typically be left partially in thekeyhole 30. FIG. 8 shows such as configuration, where the infusiontubing 62 has been loaded into the pump 10 and the slide clamp 66 hasbeen withdrawn sufficiently to place the tubing 62 into one of the openportions 74, 78 of the clamping slot 70. The upstream portion 62 a ofthe tubing 62 passes through the support hole 98 in the support arm 94.As such, the slide clamp 66 helps to prevent kinking or undesiredbending of the tubing 62. The support hole 98 holds the upstream portion62 a of the tubing 62 so that the tubing is not undesirably bent nearthe clamping slot 70.

As mentioned, this area of the tubing 62 is weakened by being pinchedclosed by the clamping slot 70. The tubing is not bent at the clampingslot as the downstream portion 62 b is held in place in the pump channel18 and the upstream portion 62 a is held in place by the support hole98. The curved support surface 102 gradually bends downwardly away fromthe support hole 98 so that if the upstream portion of the tubing 62 ahangs below the top of the pump as shown, the curved support surfaceprevents the tubing from being kinked or tightly bent at the supporthole 98. It is thus observed that the slide clamp 66 significantlyreduces the likelihood that the tubing 62 is kinked or collapsed nearthe pump 10.

Different infusion sets (having different types of tubing) may be usedaccording to the fluid which is being delivered to the patient. Forexample, nitroglycerine is used with infusion tubing having a polylining to prevent the nitroglycerine from being absorbed into the vinyltubing or otherwise interacting with the tubing and interfering with theinfusion process. Similarly, the taxol drug uses a poly lined tubing sothat the drug solution does not leach plasticizing agents out of thevinyl tubing. Epidural tubing has an anti kink delivery portiondownstream of the pumping portion of the tubing. Thus, various types ofinfusion tubing have specific uses and should not be used with the wrongtypes of infusion solutions.

According to another aspect of the invention, the slide clamp 66 may becoded according to the intended usage of the tubing 62 to select theoperational mode of the pump 10 when the clamp is inserted into thepump. An IV pump 10 may be used which contains an optical sensordisposed in communication with the keyhole 30. The slide clamps 66 maybe made in different colors, each color being used with a particulartype of infusion tubing 62. When a slide clamp 66 is inserted into thekeyhole 30, the pump 10 may, via the optical sensor, determine whatcolor the slide clamp is and only allow access to the operational modesof the pump which are compatible with the infusion tubing. The infusionpumps 10 often include drug libraries stored in their memory. When theslide clamp 66 is inserted into the infusion pump 10, the pump may onlyallow the medical personnel to select drugs and access infusion programsfor the drugs which are compatible with the infusion tubing which hasbeen loaded into the pump. Thus, the medical personnel would not be ableto access the infusion programs within the pump 10 for drugs or infusionsolutions which are not compatible with the tubing which has been loadedinto the pump.

Alternatively, the slide clamp 66 may be formed with small projectionsor recesses, or one or more identification holes 106 formed through theside or bottom thereof as indicated in FIG. 9. The pump 10 may have anoptical emitter/detector pair disposed in communication with the keyhole30 to sense the number of holes 106 or the position of the holes 106 andthereby detect the type of infusion set which is being loaded into thepump and allow the operational modes of the pump which are compatiblewith the infusion set. It will be appreciated that the slide clamp 66 ofFIG. 9 which includes holes 106 or color coding is otherwise used asdiscussed above with respect to FIGS. 5 through 8.

There is thus disclosed an improved slide clamp for IV pumps. It will beappreciated that numerous changes may be made to the present inventionwithout departing from the scope of the claims.

1. A slide clamp for use with an infusion set, the slide clampcomprising: a body configured for insertion into an infusion pump, thebody having a clamping slot formed therethrough, the clamping slot beingconfigured for receiving a tubing of an infusion set therethrough andhaving an open portion which receives the tubing without pinching thetubing closed and a narrow slit extending from the open portion which isconfigured to pinch the tubing closed when the tubing is moved into thenarrow slit; and a support arm extending away from the body, the supportarm having a support hole formed therethrough, the support hole beingconfigured for receiving the tubing of an infusion set therethrough. 2.The slide clamp of claim 1, wherein the support arm extends generallyupwardly and rearwardly from the body.
 3. The slide clamp of claim 2,wherein the support arm curves downwardly at a rear portion thereof. 4.The slide clamp of claim 1, wherein the slide clamp comprisesregistration means such that the slide clamp may only be inserted intoan infusion pump keyhole slot in a single orientation.
 5. The slideclamp of claim 4, wherein the registration means comprises a raised tabextending along a side thereof.
 6. The slide clamp of claim 1, furthercomprising a finger grip extending outwardly from the body.
 7. The slideclamp of claim 6, wherein the slide clamp comprises a pair of fingergrips extending generally laterally and upwardly from the body.
 8. Theslide clamp of claim 7, further comprising a depression between the pairof finger grips configured for receiving a user's thumb.
 9. An infusionsystem comprising the slide clamp of claim 1 and further comprising aninfusion tubing and an infusion pump, wherein the pump comprises asensor and wherein the slide clamp is coded to indicate to the pump thetype of infusion tubing being used when the slide clamp is inserted intothe pump adjacent the sensor.
 10. The infusion system of claim 9,wherein the slide clamp is color coded and wherein the sensor comprisesan optical sensor.
 11. The infusion system of claim 9, wherein the slideclamp comprises identification holes formed therethrough and wherein thesensor comprises an optical sensor, and wherein said identificationholes indicate the type of infusion tubing being used.
 12. An infusionset comprising the slide clamp of claim 1 and further comprising aninfusion tubing, and wherein the infusion tubing passes through theclamping slot and through the support hole.
 13. The infusion set ofclaim 12, wherein the support hole is configured to hold the upstreamportion of the tubing so as to extend generally upwardly from the slideclamp.
 14. An infusion set comprising: an infusion tubing; and a slideclamp, the slide clamp comprising: a body; a clamping slot formedthrough the body, the clamping slot having an open end configured forreceiving the tubing without closing the tubing and a narrow slitextending from the open end and configured for closing the tubing whenthe tubing is moved into the narrow slit; a support arm extending fromthe body, the support arm having a support hole formed therethrough; andwherein the infusion tubing passes through the clamping slot such that aportion of the infusion tubing downstream from the clamping slot extendsaway from the slide clamp and a portion of the infusion tubing upstreamfrom the clamping slot passes through the support hole and extendsgenerally upwardly from the slide clamp.
 15. The infusion set of claim14, wherein the support arm extends generally upwardly and backwardlyfrom the body.
 16. The infusion set of claim 15, wherein the support armcomprises a curved support section extending from the support hole onthe side of the support hole away from the body, the curved supportsection curving downwardly.
 17. The infusion set of claim 16, whereinthe slide clamp further comprises a finger grip extending outwardly fromthe body.
 18. The infusion set of claim 16, wherein the slide clampfurther comprises two finger grips which extend generally laterally fromthe body.
 19. The infusion set of claim 14, wherein the slide clampcomprises registration means configured such that the slide clamp may befully inserted into pump in only a single orientation.
 20. The infusionset of claim 14, wherein the slide clamp is coded such that an opticalsensor in a pump can identify the slide clamp and thereby identify thetype of infusion tubing and allow for compatible operating modes of thepump.
 21. The infusion set of claim 20, wherein the slide clamp is colorcoded such that the optical sensor can identify the color and therebyidentify the type of infusion tubing.
 22. The infusion set of claim 20,wherein the slide clamp comprises one or more identification holesformed therethrough such that the optical sensor identifies the type ofinfusion tubing thereby.
 23. A slide clamp for use with an infusion set,the slide clamp comprising: a body configured for insertion into aninfusion pump, the body having a clamping slot formed therein, theclamping slot having a first portion which is open so as to not occludea tube extending therethrough and an elongate slit extending from theopen portion configured for pinching closed a tube slid into the slit;and a pair of finger grips extending from the body, the finger gripsextending outwardly to facilitate engagement by a user's fingers withthe body extending therebetween.
 24. The slide clamp of claim 23,wherein the finger grips extend upwardly and outwardly from the body.25. The slide clamp of claim 23, wherein the finger grips have a roundedlower surface configured for receiving a user's fingers.
 26. The slideclamp of claim 23, further comprising a depression disposed between thefinger grips, the depression being configured to receive a user's thumb.27. The slide clamp of claim 23, further comprising a support armextending away from the body, the support arm having a support holeformed therein for receiving the tubing.
 28. The slide clamp of claim27, wherein the support arm is broadly rounded to support the tubing andminimize kinks therein.
 29. A method for preventing misleading andkinking of an infusion tube, the method comprises; selecting an infusionset, the infusion set comprising an infusion tube and a slide clampdisposed on the tube, the side clamp having a clamping slot configuredfor selectively occluding the tube and a separate support opening, thesupport opening being spaced apart from the first opening, and whereinthe infusion tube passes through the clamping slot and through thesupport opening; and inserting the slide clamp into an infusion pump andat least partially withdrawing the slide clamp so that the slide clampdoes not occlude flow through the tube.
 30. The method according toclaim 29, wherein the method comprises selecting a slide clamp having abody containing the clamping slot and a support arm containing thesupport opening and extending at an angle away from the body so that thetubing does not extend generally perpendicular to the clamping slot. 31.The method according to claim 29, wherein the method comprises selectingthe slide clamp with a pair of finger grips and inserting the slideclamp into the infusion pump while holding onto the finger grips. 32.The method according to claim 29, wherein the method further comprises:selecting a slide clamp which is coded such that the infusion pump mayoptically identify the slide clamp and thereby identify the type ofinfusion tube used therewith; the infusion pump optically identifyingthe slide clamp when the slide clamp is inserted into the infusion pump;and the infusion pump selectively allowing access to modes of operationwhich are compatible with the type of infusion tube.
 33. The methodaccording to claim 32, wherein the slide clamp is color coded andwherein the infusion pump optically detects a color on the slide clampto thereby detect the type of infusion tube used with the slide clamp.34. The method according to claim 32, wherein the slide clamp comprisesat least one hole therethrough, and wherein the infusion pump detectsthe configuration of the at least one hole to identify the type ofinfusion tube used therewith.